MAP22: The Catacombs (Doom 2 In Name Only)

MAP22: The Catacombs is the twenty-second map of Doom 2 In Name Only. It was designed by Tristan Clark and uses the music track "Fate of the Damned" by Mike Cody and, originally used in . The par time defined in MAPINFO is 5:30.

Red key
Walk forward to collect a chaingun, shotgun and some ammo then turn right to see a blood fountain where one or more lost souls will appear; as you pass the fountain, five alcoves containing (depending on skill level) zombiemen, imps or chaingunners will open in the north wall. Shoot the skull switch next to the large door to release some imps, then go through and open the next door to enter a large hall. Two spectres will be released to your left and right as you enter the hall, and a pack of enemies will teleport in; they will be joined by cacodemons and two revenants (or two Hell knights and an arch-vile on Ultra-Violence (UV) and Nightmare (NM)) that appear on a ledge at the opposite end, so get them to infight as much as possible. Go through either doorway at the back of the hall and head down some steps, kill a (depending on skill level) knight, baron of Hell or arch-vile waiting at the bottom then follow a trail of health bonuses to an intersection with red and blue triangles.

Go through the west doorway at the intersection to enter a cramped room with a spiral staircase. Climb the stairs to the top to find a backpack then look west to see the red skull key and shoot the lion switch behind it to open a door at ground level, then drop to the ground and kill any chaingunners that have teleported in before going through the open door to a room with wooden coffins. Kill two demons (or knights on UV and NM) that appear in front of you then head north to a rock staircase, which you can follow up past a couple of imps until you reach the red key. The door ahead will close and an arch-vile will appear behind the bars on your left - kill it then shoot the skull switch on the back wall to re-open the door so you can go back down to the spiral stairs. Go back into the coffin room and open the east door to find a spectre (or another knight on UV and NM) protecting a button that will lower a set of colored bars at the intersection.

Blue key
Return to the intersection and go through the east doorway this time, then follow the tunnel past a knight until you reach a room with some blue skull bars; the blue skull key is behind the wooden bars at the south end of the room, but watch out for a revenant hiding behind the right-hand wall as you enter the room. Press the skull switch on the north wall to open the door next to it, then follow another tunnel until you reach a fleshy teleporter; the columns surrounding it will lower to reveal three or six barons that will teleport away. Step on the teleporter to enter a hub with four exits; you will need to use all of them, with the north exit coming last.

Take the east path from the hub and follow the trail of health bonuses until you reach a wooden platform; revenants and imps (the latter is replaced with demons and knights on UV and NM) will rise from the water on either side to ambush you. Continue north past some shotgun guys to a room with marble tombs, from which four knights will rise, then open a door at the opposite end of the room and follow the path north and east to a lion switch. The switch will lower a wall to your left - go through it and kill two (depending on skill level) imps, revenants or barons waiting in the dark alcoves ahead, then climb the east steps and push another lion switch at the top. The wall directly ahead will lower, but demons and revenants (plus one or two mancubi on Hurt Me Plenty (HMP) or higher) will be released behind you as well as lost souls ahead; fight your way out, then go through the wall you just lower and head up some steps to a satyr switch, which will lower one of the barriers in the hub. Make sure to collect the supercharge and megaarmor in the crypt room on your way back.

Return to the hub and take the south path this time, following the tunnel south and east until you reach a gargoyle switch, which you can press to go down to a lava cavern with revenants. Step across the rock platforms to the east or south doorways, then go through them and head round the corner to find cacodemons, imps and lost souls guarding a set of marble steps. Go up the steps and press the lion switch at the top to lower another barrier in the hub; this will also release two demons from a compartment to the west, as well as allowing an arch-vile to teleport to the hub which will resurrect the monster corpses there.

Return to the hub and take the west path now, which you should follow until you reach some imps guarding a radiation shielding suit; pick it up, then continue following the tunnel to a plasma gun and megasphere at the entrance to a large nukage cavern. Clear out the arachnotrons and knights (or revenants and an arch-vile) waiting around the nukage, then head to the north side of the pool to find an invulnerability in front of a skull switch; pressing this switch will open the north wall to reveal another arachnotron and two mancubi, but will also allow a large group of other monsters, including a cyberdemon to teleport in. Use the powerup to help you get rid of them, then climb up the steps surrounding the nukage to the open wall and press both skull switches behind it; this will lower the final barrier in the hub and re-open the entrance to the cavern so you can leave.

Back at the hub, take the north path and follow it to a wooden room with a super shotgun (taking it will release some imps), then open the door to find the barons that teleported away earlier guarding another teleporter. Push any of the gargoyle switches surrounding the teleporter to open it and return to the west side of the map, then go back to the blue key room where you will now be able to collect this item. Open the blue skull bars in this room and press any of the gargoyle switches behind them to lower the rocket launcher on top, as well as opening the second set of bars at the intersection.

Exit
Go back to the intersection and head through the now-open north doorway, then follow the path (dodging an ambush by lost souls, and a pain elemental on HMP or higher) until you enter a chamber with a large red crucifix. Step through the crucifix to enter a dark crypt, flip the skull switch in front of you then go through the door that opens behind you and run straight forwards to a partial invisibility - as you advance, the room will light up and reveal one or two spiderdemons ahead as well as eight arachnotrons behind you. Go inside the spiderdemons' chamber and climb the steps by the south wall to a skull switch, which will open a door in the north-east corner but will also release a large group of monsters. Go through the door you just opened to see a trail of barrels leading to the exit teleporter.

Other points of interest
From the coffin room in the red key area, head west to find a plasma gun. The door will close behind you as you enter the chamber; when you press the switch behind the plasma gun to re-open it, you will be surrounded by different monsters depending on skill level.

Secrets

 * 1) Enter the building at the start and open the wall with the black banner to find a backpack, a chaingun, a super shotgun and lots of ammo. (sector 31)
 * 2) Go along the eastern path from the hub in the blue key part of the map. When it bends north, press on the brick wall in the inward corner to reveal medikits, an armor and a box of shotgun shells. (sector 695)
 * 3) In the far south-east portion of the map accessible through the southern part of the hub, go behind the switch at the top of the steps to find another switch. Press this switch, then go back to the intersection. At the corner just before you reach the intersection, there will be an open passageway leading to a room with lots of supplies, as well as a shortcut to the eastern path. (sector 942)
 * 4) After lowering both sets of colored bars at the intersection, go to the intersection and head north until you hear something lower. Go back south through the intersection and back until you see the red and blue waterfall, where a ledge has risen up so you can get on the platform. Walk through the waterfall to appear at the blood fountain outside near your starting point, landing on top of a supercharge. (sector 9) After stepping off the fountain, go back to the doorway at the starting point to find a berserk pack in a nearby alcove.

Current records
The records for the map at the Doom Speed Demo Archive are:

The data was last verified in its entirety on April 3, 2022.

Player spawns
This level contains only three spawn points, making it unplayable in deathmatch mode:
 * 1) facing north-east. (thing 16)
 * 2) facing south. (thing 212)
 * 3) facing north. (thing 213)

Things
This level contains the following numbers of things per skill level: